Jordan Spieth just misses as British Open goes to playoff

At least he was in elite company. Spieth has won four tournaments this year, including two majors – the Masters and U.S. Open – and he’s finished in the top five in six others.

Despite all of his success in the field of golf, Johnson believes that nothing will be more important than what he accomplishes through his family.

Spieth’s share of fourth place still brought him a paycheck of $460,377.

Despite the disappointment, Spieth said the loss won’t hurt too bad considering he didn’t lose the tournament on the last hole.

“I’ve got to go tomorrow morning to a Walker Cup practice session at Lytham so I’ll just think about it for the next few days and make a decision but right now there’s nothing concrete”.

“I was really motivated to win this championship this week”.

And after regaining his composure the world number two – who would have overtaken the absent Rory McIlroy in the rankings with a victory – saw his approach spin back off the green into the Valley of Sin, from where Costantino Rocca famously holed 20 years ago to get into a play-off with John Daly.

But there were no hard feelings on the way home as the famous old trophy was handed round among those on the jet, with Johnson’s caddie Damon Green posting pictures of a lively return flight on Facebook.

An emotional Johnson told the network, “I’m grateful”.

All of this at St. Andrews, the Home of Golf. He was the first in at 15-under 273.

Johnson, who won the U.S. Masters in 2007, was one under par for the extra holes. He had a birdie putt for the win on the 18th that was wide left and gave him a 66. They’re so hard to win that British bookies would probably make the odds long that any player will have a chance again in the next 13 years.

Leishman fell back quickly in the playoff, finishing two-over and leaving it all up to Johnson and Oosthuizen to duke it out for the British Open jug.

Of all the sights and sounds of Monday, bagpipes and birdies at the birthplace of golf, the lasting image for me will be Zach getting a hug from Spieth after the playoff.

As it turned out, this wasn’t a tournament Spieth lost.

“He said congratulations and that he was proud, ” Johnson said. I thank my friends.

“I wear a lens which, in conditions like we have had, enhances the light”.

‘I don’t know how many guys have done three majors in a year. Spieth was the only one who had a share of the lead so deep in the final round. It was only the second Monday finish in history for an Open Championship. But what a show.

The playoff followed a sensational day of aggressive shot-making under the drenching Scottish rain when it soon became clear from the nature of the early scores that the Open crown would go to the lowest of the low.

An opening round of 66 left him one shot behind his namesake Dustin Johnson and a 71 on Friday meant he was three adrift of the same player when the second round was eventually completed on Saturday.

Jordan Spieth fantastic bid for a Grand Slam was stopped Monday by Zach Johnson, no longer just a normal guy from Iowa.

At 21, he can only hope he gets another shot at the slam. Twelve of them are in the World Golf Hall of Fame, including Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Seve Ballesteros and Tom Watson. “I just wish I had given myself a little better opportunity”. “Today was a really tough day”.